RECOLLECTIONS
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RECOLLECTIONS |
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I thought I would start my recollections by asking the question "Why was I sent to St. Michael's School?" I haven't actually quizzed my parents about this question but it was probably because I failed the 11+ examination and therefore the choice of schools was somewhat limited. I was a scholar at the Canterbury Cathedral Choir School at the time from where several boys had progressed towards St. Michael's School and they seemed to have got along okay. At least when I first set foot on St. Michael's School soil there were people who I actually knew, namely Harold East who was Head Boy when I arrived in September 1964, and Tim Walton. First recollections?......Well, the buses were there! A rather tatty green and cream one called the "Chieftain" and a red "Bristol" bus together with a couple of even tattier looking Commer vans. I feel I was very lucky to spend my first few terms at Ingoldisthorpe, free from the harsh realities, or so I was lead to believe, of places like "Gresham House" or the "Shooting Lodge" Annex. No necessity for the heavy mac and boots routine at Ingoldisthorpe. Daphne always arrived early each morning to stoke the fires and prepare breakfast and I remember that usually there were lashings of hot water for early morning showers or baths. Another advantage of boarding at Ingoldisthorpe was the free food made available to us after end of term dances. The Rectory was said to be haunted but I never experienced anything except a blood curdling scream from Christopher White who dormed in the room next door. I seem to remember that members of the school choir were privileged with several outings. I recollect that on one very windy day we set off in one of the double-deckers already wearing our cassocks and carrying our surpluses and music. Somewhere just outside Kings Lynn the road had become blocked by a fallen tree which had brought the traffic to a complete standstill. "Right, everyone" bellowed the great voice from the bus driver, "let's see if we can move this tree." Whereupon the bus emptied and about 30 boys manhandled the tree to the side of the road still wearing their cassocks, much to the amusement and surprise of the other motorists. There are two other special memories. The first involved the "A" level Geography trips to the West Country with Miss Hayes-Williams and the other must be the special "A" level music study lessons with Miss Bone at her flat in the grounds of Sandringham House. Peter Feben-Smith, a Westminster Abbey Old Chorister, and myself would cycle to Sandringham each week for an afternoon of music study culminating in a cup of tea and meringues. By then both Peter and I were qualified drivers, so if available we would borrow the Hillman and drive ourselves to Sandringham. This was one of the highlights of the week for us. All in all, we were a very mixed bunch of people from many backgrounds. Someone robbed the school bank and absconded in the Mini-bus, while someone else was wounded at Cadets. Someone else set fire to the garden shed whilst trying to "borrow" petrol for their scooter!! Some Old Michaelian's have become teachers and some have become clergymen. I recollect that there were many pupils sent to St. Michael's School from many overseas countries, some the children of parents serving in the diplomatic service and others seeking a solid English education for their offspring. Believe it or believe it not I actually kept a day to day diary and only on rare occasions do I take the liberty to "peep" at their contents. Did you know that on Monday 21 March 1966 there were house matches (football) and in the evening I attended a Conservative Party meeting with others in Ingoldisthorpe Church Hall? Well, there was, and I did!
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